Girls basketball: Lady Lions can’t get over the hump

Four has been the un-magical number for the Lady Lions basketball team lately.Tuesday’s 36-32 loss to Tonganoxie marked the third-straight game in which Lansing lost by four points.“I like the growth we’ve had this year, but our girls have to learn to get over the hump,” Lansing coach Christine Robinson said.The Lady Lions mounted a comeback attempt late in the fourth after Mikayla Zielinski hit two 3-pointers in quick succession. The clutch shots combined with Tonganoxie’s inability to shut the door at the free-throw line turned a comfy nine-point Tonganoxie advantage into a two-point edge with a minute to go.But from there, Lansing was held scoreless and Tonganoxie finally hit a few free throws to ice it.“Our girls weren’t ready to play early, but I like how we played defensively in the third quarter to come back,” Robinson said.The loss keeps the Lady Lions winless in conference play, but on a positive note, the squad has begun consistently competing in games. In the team’s first meeting with Tonganoxie this season, the Lady Lions were blown out 60-31.“For the rest of the year, we want to be in games, and actually win them,” Robinson said.Lansing, 1-13, takes on Turner Friday at 5:45 p.m.

Lady Pioneers keep gaining momentumRiding high off its performance at last weekend’s Emporia Tournament, the Lady Pioneers basketball team kept the ball rolling at Lawrence Tuesday.Following a slow start, LV took a modest 14-8 first quarter advantage and turned it into a 65-33 landslide victory.“We didn’t play particularly well early, so you have to give credit to Lawrence for getting us out of our rhythm and comfort zone,” Leavenworth coach Derek Zeck said. “In the second half though, we were able to get a little more disciplined and control the game better. The whole game our effort was phenomenal.”Over the remaining three quarters, the Lady Pioneers outscored Lawrence 51-25. They did so with constant pressure defensively, which led to easy buckets, as well as quality offensive execution against the home team’s assortment of zones.“They care so much and they have so much passion that it sometimes gets a little too chaotic,” Zeck said of his team. “We just talked to them that we have stay disciplined to our game plan and channel our energy. When we did that, we started to take off.”Tashia Jones finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds while Rashayla Mathis had a stat line of eight rebounds, five assists, four steals and just two turnovers.The win was Leavenworth’s fourth in its last five games, pushing the team’s record to 8-5. LV will host Olathe North Friday at 5 p.m.

Immaculata frustrated at Valley FallsFrom the start Tuesday, everything went terribly wrong for the Immaculata girls’ basketball team.“The game was over before we even walked out on the floor,” Lady Raiders coach Terry Jordan said. “For some reason, we just weren’t focused, didn’t play with passion and were intimidated.”The less-than-stellar effort allowed host Valley Falls to get up early and run away with a 54-20 win over Imac.“Before Friday, we have to work on a major attitude change,” Jordan said. “The skill and development are there. We have to start believing that we are capable of great things. We have got to find the fight.”Kasey Cannon and Lauren Vardiman each scored eight points in the game and received praised from their coach for their aggressiveness.Imac, 4-9, will play at Maur Hill Friday at 6 p.m.

Ridge drops fourth straightThe losing streak continues for the Pleasant Ridge girls’ basketball team.On Tuesday, the Lady Rams were upended 52-50 in overtime by host Troy, dropping to 7-5 on the season. It was the team’s fourth-straight defeat.“We had a seven-point lead at half, but our offense went away from us,” PR coach Mike Koontz said. “They made some big buckets down the stretch and we didn’t.”Jordan Adams finished with 16 points. Next was Beth Doty with 14 while Ashten Langley and Kelsey Carpenter each had eight.Ridge will travel to West Platte tonight for a 6 p.m. contest.“We have to keep fighting,” Koontz said. “We fought very hard tonight, but our defense has to lead to our offense. We played pretty decent, we just need to find a way to stay out of these offensive ruts we get into.”

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